FBI: I-5 billboards to target domestic terror suspect

The worldwide search for suspected domestic terrorist Daniel Andreas San Diego could be coming to a billboard near you.

San Diego, an animal rights activist, is wanted in the 2003 bombings at two corporate offices in Northern California and has been placed on the FBI’s Most Wanted Terrorists list. The FBI is offering a reward of up to $250,000 for information leading to his arrest and prosecution.

The computer specialist from Berkeley, Calif., is accused in bombings at biotechnology firm Chiron Corp. in Emeryville, and nutrition and cosmetics company Shaklee Corp. in Pleasanton. No one was injured in either blast.

The search for San Diego has spanned the globe, according to the FBI.

San Diego has ties to animal rights extremist groups and is a vegan who doesn’t eat food containing animal products, the FBI says. He also has unusual tattoos, the FBI says, including a round image of burning hillsides on his chest with the words “It only takes a spark” written below, and images of burning and collapsing buildings on the sides of his abdomen and back.

As part of the FBI’s National Digital Billboard Initiative, San Diego’s photo, summary of crimes and the tip line “1-800-CALL-FBI” will be featured on electronic billboards in California and along the U.S.-Canada border in Washington and New York state. Ayn Sandalo Dietrich, spokeswoman for the FBI’s Seattle office, said the billboards will also be placed along Interstate 5 in case San Diego has traveled through the state on the way to the border.

“We do not have specific information to place him in this state, or to suggest he is traveling to Canada,” Dietrich said in a news release. “However, the possibility that he may have traveled or will travel to another country leads us to remain open to the possibility of travel northward through our state.”

Anyone with information on the whereabouts of San Diego should call their nearest FBI office or dial 911. All calls are confidential. Tips can also be submitted at: tips.fbi.gov.

About The Today File

The Today File is a general news blog featuring real-time coverage of Seattle and the Northwest. It is reported by the news staff of The Seattle Times and includes stories from The Associated Press and McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.